Danger-signal.



.No. 811,037. BATENIEDJAN. so, 1906.

' W. 0. GREVELING.

DANGER SIGNAL.

APPLIOATION FILED DEC. 8, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Witnesses. q W96 Jhvnbow- F M William 0.0revelih N E H svwwawi ATT'Y's.

1 UNITED STATES PATENT: OFFICE;

DANGER-SIGNAL,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 30, 1906.

Application filed December 8, 1904. semi No. 235,975.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that LWILLIAM C. CREVEL- ING, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of St. Louis, State of Missouri, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Danger-Signals, of which the following is-a full, clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a car, a part of the vestibule being broken away to show the interior arrangement of the switch, the conductors comprising the circuits being shown in' dotted lnes. Fig. 2 is an end view of a car with a signal applied, the front panel being removed. Fig. 3 is an elevational view of the signal-panel. Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail view of the switch and the cooperating switch-points. Fig. 5 is an end view of a car, showing a formof automatic circuitcloser;, and Fig. 6 is a sectional view on the line 6 6 of Fig. 5. a r

This invention relates to signals, and particularly to a signal adapted to be applied to a car or other'vehicle, which signal may be so controlled as to indicate when the car or vehicle has stopped and also when a car or vehicle is in close proximity thereto and moving in a direction opposite to the direction of movement of the particular car on which the signal is utilized.

During the operation of surface railways it frequently happens that persons alighting from one car are struck by a car moving in an opposite direction in crossing the tracks alongside of the car from which the have alighted. It also happen after a car has de scended anincline that the trolley will become displaced from the trolleywire, causing the car to sto If for this or for any other I I reason a car s ould stop at the bottom of an incline and the next succeeding care-should happen to be at the top of the incline, the

motorman of the next succeeding car might attempt to make up the'distance between his car and the preceding car by permitting his car to pass down the incline by gravity. If the lights in the preceding car should happen to be extinguished on account of the lack of current in the trolley-wire, the said succeeding car would be'likely to run into the ,preceding one unless some means were used for not fying themotorman of its location.

It is the purpose of my invention to provide means whereby the positions of a car or cars will be apparent whenever the ear or cars stop, so that the liability of the cars accidentally running into. each other will be avoided.

With these objects in view the invention consists in certain novel combinations of parts and details of construction, all of which will be specifically set forth hereinafter and illustrated inthe drawings, in which 1 designates an overhead trolley receiving current from the trolley wire 2 and communicating the same into the interior earcircuits through the trolley-pole 3;

4 designates the lamp-circuit, which aircuit is adapted to energize a storage-battery circuit 5 to charge a storage battery 6, the current then passing to the ground. The storage battery 6 is provided for the purpose of energizing a circuit adapted to operate an audible and visible signal or signals at either or both ends of the car. In Fig. 11 have illustrated a signal 7 at one end of the car, which may be energized by the storage bat tery .6 through a conductor 8 The signal 7 preferably consists of a housing or casing having a translucent panel 9, on which is displayed suitable characters indicative of danger, and behind this panel and within the housing or casing is a bell 10 in mul tiple with a plurality of lamps 11 in the signalcircuit including the conductor 8 and the conductor 8, leading back through the car to a suitable switch arranged conveniently accessible from the vestibule of the car. This switch is illustrated in detail in Fig. '4 and is illustrated as comprising a switch-lever 12, piv oted to to a suitable base 13 and having abifurcated end 14, which bifurcation preferably consists of insulation. Between the separated members of the bifurcated end is a pro jection 15 on the end of a pivoted member 16, shown as a bar. One end of this bar is adapted to move into and out of rengagement with a contact 17 in the storage battery circuit, which storage-battery circuit may be broken by a cut-out 18. If it is desired to en- 'ergize the storage battery 6, the cut-out 18 will be operated to close the circuit, so that the current may pass through the trolleypole into the lamp-circuit, through the contact 19 andinto the bar 16, thence through the contact 17, .through the closed cut-out, down through the conductor 5 into the battery, and then ground. I

In actual practice the current passingthrough the conductor 5 into the battery 6 will be equal toabout one hundred and ten volts or e ual to the number of volts requisite 5 to raise 2116 filaments in the lamps 6f the lamp-circuit to incandescence. Urdinarily there are about five lamps in series in the lamp-circuit, so that five hundred and fifty volts are required to energize all of them. In carrying out my invention itis contemplated at this time to dispense with one of these lamos and utilize the current which would-be applied thereto for accumulation in the storage battery.

By reference to Figs. 1 and 5 it will be observed that I have provided a contact in the storage-battery circuit, and if it is desired to energize the signal through the storagebattery circuit the operator may grasp the switch-lever 12 so as to throw said lever onto the contact 20, which operation will-simultaneously throw the bar 16 oil the contact 17, so that by a single operation the signal-circuit will be cut into the storage-battery circuit and the lamp-circuit will be cut out of the storage-battery circuit. As soon as the signal-circuit is broken by the switch-lever'12 the storagabattery circuit will be cut in with the lamp-circuit unless broken by the cut-out 3o 18. Thus it will be apparent that the storage battery will be accumulating current during the time that the signal is not energized unless the circuit is broken by the cut-out 18. T have also provided means whereby the signal or'signals may be energized directly from the lamp-circuit. This is accomplished by operating the switch-lever 12 so that its forward end below the insulated portion will engage the contacts 19. In such a position the current Will flow through the lamp-circuit tocontact 19 through the lever 12, then from the contact 21 at the pivotal point of the lever, through the conductor 8 to the signal, then through the conductor 8 to ground.

In the actual operation of the device the signal will generally be operated directly from the larnp-clrcuit whenever the car stops. At a convenient point on the end of the car T in tend to have a suitable inscription in the na ture of a Warning -for example, Stop when bell rings. As soon as the car stops the op erator will control the switch so as to close the signal-circuit, which will cause the bell to ring to attract the attention of the persons about to pass in rear of the car, and at night the lights in the signal will cause-the char-ac ters on the panel 9 to become visible, was to warn persons against passing in rear of'the car.

W hen it it desired to break the circtn't, the switch-lever will be moved to the position shown in Fi 1, and if thebattery 6 needsre plenishing t e cut-out 18 may be closed and the current will pass from the lamp-circuit to 65 the battery, as heretofore explained:

battery-circuit will generally be used as an auxiliary circuit-that is to say, the batter circuit will be employedin the event that the current gives out in the trolley. This is an important feature. For example, suppose a car should happen to be at the bottom of an incline when the power becomes exhausted over the entire system. .The operator may then cut out the lamp-circuit through the medium of the-switch-lever and cut in the storage-battery circuit by means of the cutout 1-8, so that the si nal will be'displayed. Thus the operator on t e succeeding .car pass ing down the incline by gravity would be warned of the presence of the car at the bottom of the incline on account of the signal being displayed, and thus a rear-end collision would be avoided.

in Figs. 5.and 6 T have shown a form of automatic circuit-closer comprisina shutter 22 which is hinged to one end of t 1e car, so as to normally close an opening in the dashboard thereof. This shutter constitutes a movable contact in the path of the signal-circuit and is adapted to abut against a rigid contact 23 at the lower edge of the opening. This shutter 22 is arranged to be positioned in the-front of the car, and the force of the air as the car moves forwardly will be sufficicnt to hold the contact 22 away from the contact 9 23, as shown in Fig. 6. As soon as the ear stops the contact 2.2 will automatically drop by gravity, so as to abut against the contact 28, and thus com lets the signahcircuit, so that the signal will be displayed.

-t is to be understood that the signals may be-arranged so as to become excited from a single source of energy and by one operation. This may be desirable'under certain conditionsas, for example, where it is required to notify the operator on a car moving in an opposite direction that the car on which the signals are arranged has stopped. By notifying the motorman of an oncoming car that the-car on which the signals are arranged has stopped the motorman will have ample op portunity to get his car under control before passing the car showing the signals.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is I 1. The combination with a car provided with a lamp-circuit, of a storage battery in the car, a storage-battery circuit, a signal, a signa'hcircuit a switch for throwing the storage-battery circuit into the lamp-circuit and for including. the signal-circuit in the storage battery'circuit, and a separate cut-out or breaking the storage-battery circuit when the switch. is in position to include the storage-battery circuit in the lamp-circuit; sub stantially asdescribed.

2. The combination with'a car having a source of electrical ener y adapted to be en ergized through the trolley, of a storage batthe switch is in position a storage-battery circuit, means for including the storage-battery circuit in the source of electrical energy, a signal-circuit, and means for including the signal in either the source of electrical energy or the storagebattery circuit when the storage-battery circuit is not included in the source of electrical energy; substantially as described. 3. The combination with a car provided with a source of electrical energy, of a storage battery in the car, a storage-battery circuit, a signal-circuit, a switch for throwing the storage-battery circuit into the source of electrical energy, and for including or cutting out the signal-circuit in or from the source of electrical energy, and a separate cut-out for breaking the storage-battery circuit when to include the storage-battery circuit in the source of electrical energy; substantiall as described.

4. Adanger-s1gna lncliidingan energizingtery,

circuit, a signal circuit, a storage battery circuit, a single switch for throwing the energizing-circuit alternately into the signalcircuit and the storage-battery circuit, and a cut-out in one of the circuits; substantially as described.

5. A danger-signal including an energizingcircuit, a storage-battery circuit, a signalcircuit, and a switch mechanism for alternately throwing the energizing-circuit in either of the other circuits, said switch mechanism including a lever having an insulated bifurcated end, and a swinging member engaging the bifurcated end of said lever; substantially as described.

6. The combinationwith a car, of a dangersignal on the car, a signal-circuit, an energizing-circuit, a stationary contact in the path of the signal-circuit, and a swinging contact in the path of the energizing-circuit, said swinging contact beingadapted to contact with the stationary contact only when the car is'not in motion; substantially as described.

7. A danger-signal including an energizingcircuit, a signal-circuit, a storage-battery circuit, and a single switch for throwing the energizing-circuit alternately into the signalcircuit and the storage-battery circuit, said switch comprising a lever 12 having an insulated bifurcated end, and a pivoted bar having one end in engagement with the bifurcat-ed end of the lever and the other end free to engage a switch-point; substantially as descri ed.

8. The combination-with a car having a source of electrical energy and a lamp-circuit in connection therewith, of a stora e battery, a storage-battery circuit, a signa -circuit, a switch movable to include the storage-battery circuit in the source of electrical energy, said switch bein also movable to a position to include the s1gnal-circuit in the storagebattery circuit and to simultaneously cut out the storage-battery circuit from the source of electrical energy, and a si 'nal in the signalcircuit comprising a casing aving a translucent panel, a bell in the casing and included in the circuit, and lamps in the circuit with the bell; substantially as described.

In testimony whereofl hereunto afiix my signature, in the presence of two witnesses, this 2d day of December, 1904:.

' WILLEAM C. CREVELING.

Witnesses:

E. F. FUNK, ,Gnonen BAKEWEL'L. 

